This invention relates to golf putters, and particularly to the automatic redirection of a ball in response to an unintentional change in the intended swing arc.
The science of golf putters is well developed.
A large number of golf putter configurations are available from pro shops and stores. Each of the putters is directed to improving the feel, repeatability and accuracy of golf strokes, and promoting the ability of accelerating a putter face through a golf ball so that the proper momentum and direction may be imparted to the ball to strike the ball toward a target.
Alignment marks on upper surfaces of the putter direct the proper positioning of the putters adjacent the balls before the backswings. Marks on top of putters also provide visual reinforcement at the time that the putter strikes the ball. Marks on top of the putter head are not visible during the backswing, or should not be preeminent in the golfer's mind, since the attention should be focused directly on the ball.
Whether or not the marks are visually perceivable during the swing, problems are encountered in making reproducible putter swings or strokes.
At the moment of contact with the ball during a putting stroke, the face of the putter should be perpendicular to the intended line to the virtual target. The virtual target may be some point offset from the hole to compensate for slope of the green. When the stroke line is off the intended line, the face of the putter is often canted, making the ball travel in an unintended direction.
The present invention is directed to overcoming the problems that exist in the prior art and to automatically compensating for mis-struck putts.